The Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Good News
Author: Meghna Pant
Publisher: Penguin India
Rating: 2.5/5
Who doesn’t like fast-paced dramas that have quirky dialogues, colourful characters and action-packed storyline? I surely do. But the only turn off for me in such dramas is the dilemma of humour overkill! Meghna Pant’s The Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Good News is just about that! Using witty dialogues, the author definitely aces the test when it comes to classifying her book as a complete pot-boiler yet the predictable plot and over-the-board characters, time and again, make it unbearable for the readers (or at least, for me) to sit through their comical (or so they are supposed to be) conversations.
The story revolves around a 34-year-old divorcee, Ladoo, who has a bizarre desire to become a mother. Mind you, she doesn’t care if the baby is born with the help of a sperm donor. Yet her heart, as humanly as it can be, looks for the light at the end of the dark tunnel and wishes to find a life partner too during the course of her journey. Both Ladoo and her younger sister, Tamara, are blunt yet suave. They want to experience life to the fullest and leave behind no guilt or remorse. In that way, they are likeable. But when it comes to the way they speak to each other, I couldn’t endure the overdramatization of their emotions! Mr Joshi is the most realistic character whose words of wisdom and terror traits are worth laughing at! Some sections of the book obviously provide genuine moments of laughter but the overall impact is average.
The Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Good News has an intriguing cover and that’s what made me get this book. But it failed to pass the muster. The overall hype around this book isn’t quite palatable. Nevertheless, I do appreciate the fact that this book is a quick read!
Best wishes to the author!
Buying link: Amazon